Niall Warburton and the Conundrum of the Mummy
by Jet556
Summary: Featuring a cast of exciting new characters! Five students including Niall Warburton and his crush the bashful Carla Marzorati end up going on a trip to a country house that has been converted into a Museum of Egyptology because everyone else had the good sense not to get the forms signed by their parents. Once there, things go into chaos as a living mummy appears on the scene!
1. Dramatis Personae

**Welcome everyone to a story that I'll be starting early. Currently, we'll just have a Dramatis Personae. Many of the main characters in this are OCs, if you haven't noticed and since many of the canon characters are in minor rolls this will result in a "What would X do?" moment sometimes. "Attack of the Flying Mustaches" will be updated later today. Enjoy and review.**

**Dramatis Personae **

Niall Warburton: A short, thin, plain-looking red headed 9th grader who serves at the hero. Age 14

William Acklom: A classmate of Niall who is known for being quite decent towards everyone, originally from England. Age 14

Arthur Van Sloun: A rather odd student, originally from Minnesota so he has a Viking obsession. Age 14

Bramwell Cheetham: A large student who looks like a shaved gorilla and is far more intelligent than most people think, a bully to those he hates and a friend to those he likes. Age 14

Carla Marzorati: A shy and talented young painter and classmate of Niall who he is starting to see in a different light. Age 14

Mr. Cedric Thesiger: Norrisville High's History Teacher of the Week, his predecessor ended up believing he was the Egyptian god Amun. He is not to be confused with Niall's father Cerdic Warburton. Age 53

Anthony Marzorati: An archaeologist who has turned one of his many country houses into a Museum of Egyptology, Carla's contumelious half-brother. Age 29

Harold Marzorati: Carla's half-brother and Anthony's full brother. Age 41

Randy Cunningham aka the Ninja: A major player with a minor role.

Howard Weinerman: A major player with a minor role.

Heidi Weinerman: A major player with a minor role.

Bash Johnson: A major player with a minor role.

Debby Kang: A major player with a minor role.

Bucky Hensletter: A major player, no pun intended, with a minor role.

Theresa Fowler: A major player with a minor role.


	2. Prologue

**Welcome back everyone. It's prologue time! Enjoy and review.**

**Prologue **

It was a day life any other in Norrisville. Heidi Weinerman was giving a podcast, the Ninja had fought a monster Bash Johnson was being a jerk all was normal! And it wasn't even 8:40 A.M. yet!

On this day there was to be a field trip. Not that anyone with the sense not to go on the trip, were going on the trip otherwise they would not have had the sense not to go on the trip. The trip was for grades 9 to 11 and thus the likes of Randy Cunningham, the Weinermans, Bash Johnson, Debby Kang, Buck Hensletter and Theresa Fowler were not on going on this trip. In fact only five students were going on this field trip. They consisted of all 9th graders: Niall Warburton, William Acklom, Arthur Van Sloun, Bramwell Cheetham and Carla Marzorati.

It was odd that Robert would have more sense than Niall in this case but such was the situation. Niall was going because he had a crush on Carla. Carla was going because her older half-brother Anthony was the owner of the Museum of Egyptology they were going to.

Carla Marzorati was the fourteen-year-old daughter of an elderly Casanova, he was about seventy-five years old and had no interest of any of his daughters but still put the pressure on them of holding up the family name. Carla had brown shoulder length hair tucked behind her ears, with bangs and was held in place by a bright green headband. Her wardrobe consisted of a short-sleeved, bright red t-shirt with a bright purple, bright green-rimmed sailor-style collar and dark yellow jeans along with plain, bright blue sneakers. She was a shy girl and a talented painter, not really liked by Theresa but that might have had something to do with the sailor-style collar reminding Theresa of Amanda Levay, and was something of an object of torture for Mr. Marzorati's older daughters simply because they thought he talent as a painter was some scheme to make their father interested in her when in fact Carla simply enjoyed painting.

The teacher supervising this trip was Norrisville High's new history teacher Cedric Thesiger. He was a middle-aged man who was something of a Miles Gloriosos. And by that it means he had a lot in common with the character as portrayed by Leon Greene: Boisterous and violent rather than boisterous and incompetent. Standing outside of the bus, Thesiger looked at the five students. "INSIDE EVERYONE OR THERE SHALL BE A BEATING FOR ANY OF THE BOYS WHO IS NOT IN HERE WITHIN TEN SECONDS!" He had quite the baritone. Randy, the Weinerman's and Bash all watched with eyes that showed nothing but hate for this new history teacher. Bash might have been a bully but he did have standards. As soon as Thesiger started counting all of the boys went running only for poor Niall to trip and Thesiger to quickly speed up his counting. As soon as Thesiger finished counting, he walked towards Niall who had only barely gotten up and hit him on the back with a cane that was more for show than anything. The blow caused Niall to fall back down and everyone who wasn't a student to turn a blind eye. A blow from Thesiger was the last thing anyone wanted. Two more times Niall had been struck on the back with the cane until Heidi stepped in between Niall and Thesiger.

As soon as she stepped between the two, Thesiger had stopped and glared at Heidi with a vile look in his eye. Quickly, Niall ran into the bus with the pain in his back raging as if he had been in a car crash!

Taking a seat opposite of Carla, Niall noticed that besides the ever decent William Acklom the only student not mocking him was Carla herself. He was hoping the crush was mutual but the crush with Theresa only caused him to be doubtful and yet he still hoped. Unsure of what to do, Niall looked at Carla and gave a little smile.

She smiled back and a little bit of warmth started to grow in Niall's heart. Maybe the doubt wasn't needed.


	3. ACT I: The Entrance Hall

**Welcome back everyone. Haven't much to say but I really want show Niall without Randy, Theresa, Howard, etc. In some ways he's still the poor guy who can't talk to people. Enjoy and review.**

**The Entrance Hall**

Entering the country house the students, save Carla, and their teacher looked around the room. To the left and right of the entrance there were two sphinx statues and lined against the walls were some fifty sarcophagi. The painted eyes watched them, causing the frightened Niall to edge close to the equally frightened Carla. There was something so creepy about this scene.

"WHERE IS YOUR HALF-BROTHER, CARLA?" asked Thesiger. Carla murmured an answer. "WHAT WAS THAT?" Again Carla murmured an answer. "SPEAK UP!"

"She said she doesn't know!" Niall's lack of a stutter caused Thesiger to glare; William, Arthur and Bramwell to look shocked; and Carla to look atouched.

Thesiger didn't give a response to Niall's bravery he just walked over to a chair that was in front of a coffee table located near a set out stairs. Also near the coffee table was another chair and a couch. On the coffee table were two books and a blank sheet of paper. William, Arthur and Bramwell also took seats while Niall and Carla remained standing.

Walking over to a desk with a mirror to the right of the sphinx that was to the right of the door, Niall looked at what was on the desk. A top hat! Must have belonged to Carla's half-brother Anthony.

While Niall did that, Carla walked over to the doors at the end of the hall. They were locked! Looking around, she saw a potted plant to the right of the staircase that had something shining in it.

A key perhaps?

If only. It was no key, Carla had found but a seal of Bes, the Egyptian God of the Arts.

As Carla found the seal Niall had become preoccupied by the nose of the sphinx to the left of the door. Touching it, a sound was heard. Turning around, Niall saw a panel open in the staircase.

"NIALL!" Thesiger stood up. "WHAT DID YOU DO?" Niall didn't eve get a word out before Thesiger started talking again. "YOU'RE GETTING DETENTION WHEN WE GET BACK TO SCHOOL!"

"Mr. Thesiger, Niall didn't do anything wrong." Objected the blonde William.

"SHUT UP!"

The argument that had started caused Niall to sneak out of Thesiger's attention and toward the panel that had opened. Halfway there he met Carla. The panel had been located behind the chair Thesiger had been sitting in and with him arguing with William, Niall and Carla were able to get to the panel unnoticed.

In the secret compartment was a key. With a smile at Niall, Carla took it and walked over to the doors at the end of the entrance hall, Niall following her, and unlocked them.

Opening the doors quietly, Carla looked at Niall. "Care to come in?" she asked, her voice soft and quiet.

"W-W-What a-a-about the others?" asked Niall.

"They can wait, I want to find Anthony." And with that she walked into the exhibit rooms. Niall followed her, wondering if he would have followed Theresa when he had a crush on her.


	4. ACT I: The Exhibit Rooms

**Welcome back everyone. Please, give a review. It will tell me I'm not in a dead end. Enjoy.**

**The Exhibit Rooms**

Niall stood in the room he and Carla had entered. In the center of the room on a table was an open sarcophagus with a mummy inside it. The very sight of it caused Niall to shiver. It wasn't the kind of shiver Niall felt when he had seen Theresa at the Dance Beneath The Stars that was the shiver of infatuation. The shiver Niall had shivered was the shiver of fright.

Niall wasn't sure why but he hated the sight of a mummy. When he had been little, Niall always would have hidden behind his dad every time he saw a mummy.

"Something wrong?" asked Carla.

"Scared." Said Niall, pointing at the mummy.

Carla didn't laugh, giggle or heckle. She just walked over to Niall and gave him a reassuring yet shy smile. "Everything's alright."

Niall looked at his crush with questioning eyes. How could she say that? There was a Ninja, monsters and robots in their hometown so why shouldn't they expect a mummy to get up?

"W-w-who w-w-was i-i-it?" asked Niall, again pointing at the mummy.

"A Priest of Aten as Anthony tells me." Answered Carla.

Niall nodded, accepting the answer. He didn't know how to tell the difference between a Priest and a Pharaoh and apparently neither did Carla because her half-brother Anthony had told her this was a priest's mummy.

The room was filled with artifacts from the priest's tomb. The eyes of statues were watching the two 9th graders and there were many other things. It was better the eyes of statues than the eyes of sarcophagi. It was less creepy in the priest room than in the entrance hall.

As Carla looked around the room, Niall walked over to the mummy. He didn't like the look of this thing. It was like the mummified cadaver he had seen in the "Crazy Palace." The difference between this mummy and the one in that place he had been dared to go in was that it was far older.

Walking away from the mummy, Niall opened a set of doors on the room's right. There was a massive statue of who Niall assumed was a Pharaoh.

"Oh, you found the Amenhotep I room!" said Carla. This room was aptly named for the statue was a statue of Amenhotep I. Carla then walked over to the doors on the left side of the Priest room and opened them. "And here is the Sarcophagi Room!" Carla felt a shiver run down her spine. "Sarcophagi in the entrance hall and in here, creepy." Niall walked over to Carla who only walked to the back of the sarcophagi room. There were two sets of doors. "One of these is the storeroom… But which one?" Carla looked at Niall who just shrugged. "Oh well, let's go in the Amenhotep I room, maybe we'll find a clue to where Anthony is in there."


	5. ACT I: The Amenhotep I Room

**Welcome back everyone. "Attack of the Flying Mustaches" will be updated later today. Enjoy and review.**

**The Amenhotep I Room**

In the Amenhotep I room, a locked door had come to the attention of the mutual crushes. It was located at the far end on the left. On a panel to the right of this door was four symbols which corresponded to four empty circles opposite them. Taking the Seal of Bes out of her pocket, Carla looked at the door.

"W-W-What's that?" asked Niall.

"Seal of Bes." Answered Carla.

"B-Bes?"

"Egyptian God of the Arts."

"W-W-Where did you find that?"

"In the hall."

"I-I-I saw something like that next to that black dog statue in this room."

"The statue of Anubis?" Niall nodded. "Can you show me?" Niall led Carla to the statue of Anubis, the Egyptian Jackal-Headed God of Death that was located against the wall on the left of the statue of Amenhotep I. Sure enough there was a seal there. Kneeling down, Carla picked up the seal and looked at it. "This is the seal of Serket!"

"S-S-Serket?"

"The Egyptian Goddess of Healing Poisonous Bites."

Niall looked at the statue of Anubis. He had read 'Tales of Ancient Egypt' by Roger Lancelyn Greene, he knew who Anubis was. Why hadn't Bes and Serket been mentioned at all in that book? He then looked at the display case on Carla's left. The knife on it caught his eye. "Carla, were the Egyptians big on s-s-sacrifice?"

"Yes, why?"

"J-J-Just wondering." Niall then walked back over to the locked door and looked at the wall on it's right that was covered in photographs. A picture of the Sphinx caught his attention. It wasn't because there was anything particularly interesting about the picture just that there was something poking out of the bottom. As it turned out it was a photo of Carla when she was five. She just kept getting lovlier every year it seemed! Why had this photo been hidden?

Again Niall noticed something. At the foot of the other locked door in the Amenhotep I room was a scrap of bandage. Quickly running to the entrance of the Amenhotep I room, Niall surprised Carla a great deal.

"Niall?" she sounded worried. "What's the mater?"

Niall didn't say anything. He just looked at the mummy of the Priest of Aten. There was something not right here.


	6. ACT I: The Priest's Room

**Welcome back everyone. Enjoy and review.**

**The Priest's Room**

Walking into the priest's room, Niall noticed a toolbox at the right of the table upon which the open sarcophagus of the priest's mummy rested. Walking over to the mummy, Niall noticed the name on a label that was on the table: Imhotep.

Besides the famous film character, first portrayed by Boris Karloff in 1932, there was a real Ancient Egyptian polymath, who served under the Third Dynasty Pharaoh Djoser and his chancellor and the High Priest of Amen-Ra, more simply known as Ra, the Egyptian Sun God. Carla had been told by her half-brother, this Imhotep was a Priest of Aten. All three were priests… What were the chances?

Kneeling down and opening the toolbox, Niall saw a small bottle of oil, a hammer with a lever and a screwdriver. Better take all three they could come in handy.

He then looked up and saw something by a bust to the left of the door that lead to the sarcophagi room. Walking over, Niall picked it up and recognized it as the seal of Thoth, Egyptian God of Wisdom and Magic.

With a smile, Niall said: "Thank you, Roger Lancelyn Greene!" Turning back to the Amenhotep I room, Niall quickly ended up bumping into Carla. "Carla!" He said without a stutter. "Look what I found!" He handed her the screwdriver and put his hand in his pocket. He ended up taking out the bottle of oil. "Whoops, wrong thing." He put the bottle of oil back in his pocket and took out the seal of Thoth. Handing it to Carla, Niall smiled happily. "See, the seal of Thoth!"

"You know who Thoth is?" asked Carla, more surprised Niall who Thoth was than his lack of a stutter.

"I did read 'Tales of Ancient Egypt' by Roger Lancelyn Greene." Answered Niall.

"Where was it? By the curse of the Imhotep mummy?"

"No, it was by the… C-C-Curse?" And thus came back Niall's stutter. Carla pointed to the inscription behind the mummy. That was a curse. Niall looked at it and swallowed. What was with Egypt and curses? "N-N-No, I-I-I found i-i-it by the b-b-bust over there." Niall pointed over at the bust.

Carla was tempted to either hug or kiss Niall on the cheek but she didn't. She just game him a smile.

And then out of the corner of her left eye she saw something!

Beneath a blue stool was a tiepin. Kneeling down she picked it up. Looking up at Niall, she shrugged being as unable to figure out why it was here as Niall was. But still like hammer, screwdriver and bottle of oil this tiepin would probably come in handy.


	7. ACT I: Again The Entrance Hall

**Welcome back everyone. I'll be focusing more often on this story now, with there probably being multiple updates in a day since I intend for this to be my longest Randy Cunningham fan fic but at the same time I don't want it to take that long. Enjoy and review.**

**Again The Entrance Hall**

The argument between Thesiger and William had come to an end when Thesiger, predictably, threatened to hit William with his cane. It should be noted that in contrast to Cerdic Warburton who needed a cane to walk, Thesiger's was purely for show or in some cases violence.

William sat in his seat glaring at Thesiger. Already he hated Thesiger. Even Arthur Van Sloun, who for all his oddness and his shrine to Ivar the Boneless that was in his locker was an all-loving person, hated him.

The English William and the Minnesotan Arthur both sat next to each other glaring at Thesiger. He was busy looking at his reflection in the handle of his cane.

What was going on inside Arthur's head was more of a question of what went on inside Thesiger's. Much of the time, Arthur was thinking about Vikings. It couldn't be helped. He was from Minnesota where the only movie ever shown on television was the 1958 film "The Vikings", the only show on television was "Vikings" and the only books in the bookstores and libraries were "The Viking" by Edison Marshall, "Gesta Danorum" by Saxo Grammaticus and the Volsunga saga. Bottom line: Minnesotans are obsessed with Vikings. Must be why their sports team was called the Vikings.

At the moment, Arthur was not thinking about Vikings. Instead he was thinking about where Niall and Carla were, not that he called them by their actual names. Indeed, he didn't call anyone by their actual names. It was a problem he had that no one else from Minnesota had. He called Randy "Einar", Howard "Eric", Heidi "Morgana", McFist "Ragnar", Viceroy "Egbert", Bash "Godwin", Debby "Enid", Bucky "Aella", Theresa "Kitala", Slimovitz "Sandpiper", Mrs. Driscoll "Bridget" and Coach Green "Bjorn." What did he call Niall and Carla? "Rollo" and "Pigtails" respectively even though Carla didn't have pigtails.

"Where are Rollo and Pigtails?" asked Arthur.

"Who?" asked Thesiger.

"He means Niall and Carla." Said William.

Standing up, Thesiger looked around. There was William, Arthur and Bramwell but no Niall or Carla. "Niall and Carla gone? I'll see Niall with a head injury and Carla's hands bound behind her!"

And with that Thesiger went in search of Niall and Carla. William, Arthur and Bramwell followed with the intentions to warn their classmates of their tyrannical teacher.


	8. ACT I: The Sarcophagi Room

**Welcome back everyone. This is in no way suggested by SariSpy56 it is in fact an adaptation of a game whose title I will withhold so you don't spoil yourselves! Enjoy and review.**

**The Sarcophagi Room**

The sarcophagi room was quite the place to be in. Walking over to a locked door, Carla noticed the big bar of a boulder inscribed with hieroglyphs carved on it. On the right, hidden in the corner between the bar and the locked door there was the Seal of Sebek, Egyptian God of the Army. Picking it up, Carla turned around and looked at Niall.

Niall was looking at a display case on the left wall at the far end that had information on the Egyptian gods.

_Serket: Helps bring the pharaoh into the world and also helps priests and gods who are under threat._

_Set: Master of deserts and mountains._

_Sebek: Master of waters._

_Bes: The guardian angel. Sometimes represented with multiple heads with knives in its hands._

_Nut: Mother of the stars, she swallows the sun in the evening and releases it again from her breast in the morning._

_Thoth: Teaches hieroglyphics, he is the patron saint of scribes, represented as a man with a ibis or baboon head._

_Anubis: Master of cemeteries. He presides over embalming ceremonies._

"No need to look at that, Niall." Carla walked over to Niall and held up the Seal of Sebek. "I can figure this out."

"S-S-So c-c-can I-I-I." Niall then pointed at the display case. "J-J-Just some e-e-errors." They had four seals there was four empty places on that puzzle in the Amenhotep I room.

Sebek was the master of water. The top symbol was of a pitcher on the seal puzzle door. Bes was generally shown with knives in his many hands. The bottom symbol was of a blade on the seal puzzle door. Thoth was generally shown with a human body and an ibis head. That was the second symbol from the top on the seal puzzle door. Serket didn't seem to match the third symbol from the top on the seal puzzle door though: a sun.

They were missing a seal. They both knew that. Turning to look at the locked door, Niall and Carla both looked at each other. The seal they were missing just had to be behind that door!

"There has to be a key." Carla looked around. "Hidden in here somewhere." Her eyes fell on the line of four sarcophagi against the wall on the right. The painted eyes caused both her and Niall to feel uneasy. Carla walked over to the sarcophagi and looked at the floor. The second one in the line was on top of something! "Uh, Niall, can you help me move this?"

Niall didn't want to move the sarcophagus but he helped Carla because of his heart. Once then had moved the sarcophagus they had found a concealed bay with a padlock. With the screwdriver, Niall broke the padlock but ended up breaking the screwdriver too.

"So much f-f-for defending us." Niall put the broken screwdriver in the bay as Carla pulled out a key.

The boy and the girl then walked over to the locked door and were about to unlock the door with the key when they noticed something. The lock was rusty and if they tried to use the key they might break it. Again, coming to the rescue, Niall pulled out the small bottle of oil and used it on the door. It had nearly been empty but there was just enough to fix the lock.

Carla unlocked the door and together, she and Niall walked through the door.


	9. ACT I: The Storeroom

**Welcome back everyone. Enjoy and review.**

**The Storeroom**

The storeroom was dark and filled with things. The sheer creepiness of it caused Niall and Carla to get closer to one another.

Looking around, Niall noticed a wooden box to the right side of the room. Walking over to it, Niall discovered it was locked. There must have been something he could use to open it.

Now what the juice had he done with that claw hammer? He was holding it. That wasn't his finest moment.

Bringing the hammer down on the box, Niall looked inside. There was a large gear cog, a medium gear cog, a small medium cog and the Seal of Nut! Unfortunately, the hammer had not been made very well and had broken just as it had broken the box.

"Carla!" Carla turned to look at Niall. He waved the Seal of Nut in the air. She gave him a smile.

Nut was the goddess of the sky. There was a symbol of a sun on the locked door in the Amenhotep I room. This was perfect!

And then entered Thesiger and the rest! This was not perfect!

"Niall, Carla!" Thesiger grabbed Carla's wrist with a grip that was like a metal clamp. "Alright, Niall, get over here or so help me I'll beat you till you need brain surgery!" Putting the cogs in his pocket, Niall shook his head. He wasn't going to listen Thesiger if he was going to threaten him! Immediately, William, Arthur and Bramwell all moved to a far end of the room to avoid being hit by Thesiger's wrath. Thesiger even let go of Carla and started to walk until… "No one disobeys me and comes out unharmed, I'll-" From the doorway, a bandaged hand reached out a clasped around Thesiger's neck. And then another! Until finally, Thesiger fell dead and the students saw that a mummy was responsible for the murder.

"Well, he's dead." Commented William as the mummy left.

"Deader than Ivar the Boneless." Added Arthur.

"Dead as a doornail." Said Bramwell.

Niall and Carla both walked to the far end of the storeroom where there was a locked wall cabinet. It had to contain something useful. Taking the tiepin from her pocket, Carla used it to unlock the door. It did unlock the door and did not break.

It only had a bottle of whiskey. Could always use that to make the mummy slip if it ever came after them.


	10. ACT I: Again The Amenhotep I Room

**Welcome back everyone. Enjoy and review.**

**Again the Amenhotep I Room**

Niall came running into the Priest's room followed by Carla and the three others. The Imhotep mummy was still there and it looked nothing like the mummy that had slain Thesiger. He then ran back into the sarcophagi room and opened every sarcophagus in that room. To his amazement and alarm they were all empty! And then he went to the entrance hall and found all fifty of the sarcophagi in their empty as well!

Agitation filling him, Niall began to wonder if they had all been empty already or if there was now many mummies roaming this place!

"Niall." Carla walked up to him. "The Amenhotep I room… We have to solve that door's puzzle." She was faint of voice, affrighted of the mummy as Niall and the three blockheads were. "If the mummy is down here then all we can do is stay one step ahead him."

This did not comfort Niall but walk to the Amenhotep I room her did. That scrap of bandage they had found at the locked door in the Amenhotep I… The mummy must have come from there so he must have been anywhere in the house by now!

Entering the Amenhotep I room, Niall was surprised to find that it was just the same as when he had last been in there. No sign that a mummy had ever walked through here save for that scrap of bandage at the locked door.

"Where could that thing have gone?" asked Arthur.

Niall didn't give an answer neither did Carla. This left William and Bramwell to their jabbering.

While the three jabbered, as blockheads do, Niall and Carla walked to the puzzle door.

Here it was. The door of mystique! What was behind that door? They were going to find out!

If it was Carla's half-brother Anthony that was in there or the mummy they would find out. Both Niall and Carla were hoping Anthony would be in there.

And then a question came to Niall's mind. What would the Ninja do?

Go after the mummy most likely. But Niall was not like the Ninja… He could not fight and besides he was a pacifist. The one time he had fought he had ended up having a mental breakdown. Niall could not fight or slay, he just couldn't.


	11. ACT I:The Puzzle of the Amenhotep I Room

**Welcome back everyone. Enjoy and review.**

**The Puzzle of the Amenhotep I Room Solved**

Niall and Carla walked to the door where the puzzle was. Niall put the Seal of Sebek on the empty circle next to the symbol of the pitcher. Carla put the Seal of Thoth on the empty circle next to the symbol of the man with the ibis head. Niall then put the Seal of Nut next to the symbol of the sun. And finally Carla put the Seal of Bes on the empty circle next to the symbol of the blade.

They heard the door unlock and they would have opened it if not for the Seal of Serket that was all that remained. There was no place for it on the door the puzzle had been solved. Looking at it, Niall then looked at Carla.

He put it in his pocket. It would make a nice souvenir to show everyone back home in Norrisville… If they ever got home!

They didn't open the door, even though the other three were behind them. Through the heads of all five a question lingered. Where was the mummy now?

Where had it gone? Had all of the sarcophagi really been empty? Or had there been one occupied sarcophagus?

What about the Ninja? Did he have a phone number? Was there a Ninja-Phone? What about a Ninja-Symbol? How would they contact him? It's not like the Ninja was anyone they knew like Randy or Howard.

Then again what would they do? What would Randy do? What would Howard do? Wasn't that a question for the ages!

"Are we going in or not?" asked Arthur. He looked down at Niall and Carla who were in the way. "If they don't move I say we sacrifice them to Odin!"

Bramwell face palmed at Arthur's suggestion. "Shut up, lanky!" Arthur was both tall and lean so it fit.

Niall opened the door and in his heart felt a twinge of fear. It wasn't because of something in the room but because of the presence of the mummy. It could be in any room, around any corner. He wouldn't let his fears get the best of him. He would help Carla find her brother because he…

Turning to face William, Arthur and Bramwell Niall took a deep breath. "If you want to wait outside then wait. I'm going to help Carla find her brother. We don't expect help."

Arthur and Bramwell were about to walk away until, they were stopped by William. They weren't going anywhere.


	12. ACT I: Anthony's Study

**Welcome back everyone. We're at the end of Act I. Enjoy and review.**

**Anthony's Study**

Through the doors was a study. It was a study like any other.

"This is Anthony's study." Said Carla.

In the middle of the study was a table. On this table was a newspaper. Niall walked over to the newspaper and looked at it.

_An Anomalous Almsgiver_

_Anthony Marzorati, the acclaimed scientist and adventurer, is going to open his residence's doors to the public and display the articles from his numerous explorations. His great work was to deliver from the sands the mummy of Aten priest Inhotep. The mummy is said to be accursed. Official opening will be announced soon in our newspaper._

So Anthony was considered strange. That was some good info.

Niall looked around. The study seemed t have only one doorway, the one they had entered by. There had to be another doorway!

There was a dark corner behind a screen next to the far end of the room. Niall then looked at an unlit candle on the left side of the desk by the screen. And next to a book on the desk was a box of matches! Niall quickly used the matches to light the candle. It revealed a door just in front of him. It was linked to a strange system that appeared to keep it closed. Next to the door was an open box that housed a strange device that had about three gear cogs missing. In the corner of the room, to the left of the box, was a stove. The energy from the stove must have been needed to open the door! There had to be a way to light it! To make a fire: wood, paper and some fuel were needed.

Like alcohol!

Niall walked to the table and grabbed a scrap of paper. He then took a piece of splintered wood from his pocket and put it in the stove with the paper. Finally, he added the whisky to it. He then turned to the device and put the cogs from his pocket in the correct places. And then turning to the stove he again used the matches and the door was open!

Shocked at all of the work Niall had done, William looked at the shortest 9th grader in Norrisville High with wide eyes.

"You did that, Niall?" Niall nodded in response. "Wow."


	13. ACT II: The Library

**Welcome back everyone. ACT II begins now! Enjoy and review.**

**The Library**

The group of five had ended up in a library. This manor had a library… Of course it did.

"There are two doors on the second floor of the library. One of them is a small one-way door that can't be opened from this side." Said Carla. "The other is a normal sized door. Anthony needed a key to open it so it's probably locked."

"And if he's missing then he must have the key too." Added Arthur.

"N-N-Not i-i-if i-i-it's i-i-in h-h-here." Niall looked around. There was something strange. Most of the books were perfectly arranged by the color of their cover. Yet every now and then there was a book that did not belong. Realizing what had to be done, Niall snapped his fingers. "Basic!" He walked up the stairs to the second floor of the library and walked to a set of shelves next to the small door that was filled with glaucous anthologies. There was one with a damask cover. Niall walked back to a set of brackets with Stygian anthologies. There was a cadmium anthology in there. And when he walked to a set of brackets with cerulean anthologies, Niall noticed a glaucous one. He then walked down the stairs to a set of brackets with cadmium anthologies. There was a charcoal anthology. He then walked to a set of brackets containing charcoal anthologies. There was a Stygian anthology. And then at a set of brackets with damask anthologies there was a charcoal anthology. And going down to a gray baluster near the library entrance, Niall found a cerulean anthology, about the days of yore! "N-N-Never f-f-falls f-f-far f-f-from t-t-the tree." Walking back to the stairs, Niall stumbled at the weight he was carrying.

It was at this point that Bramwell took the book. "Here, I'll do the work for you." He returned the cerulean anthology to the shelf it belonged and took the glaucous anthology there it was about belief. He returned the belief anthology to where it belonged and took the damask anthology, it was about geography. He returned the geography anthology to where it belonged and took the charcoal anthology, it was about reasoning. He then returned the reasoning anthology to where it belonged and took the Stygian anthology, it was about acts. He returned to act anthology to where it belonged and took the cadmium anthology, it was about biology. He then returned to biology anthology to where it belonged and took the charcoal anthology, it was also about reasoning. Bramwell opened the reasoning anthology and in it found a door key! "Bingo!"

The five then walked up the stairs to the locked door. Bramwell put it in the keyhole and lo and behold it worked! The door unlocked!

There was another puzzle down. What other ones were in store no one knew. What they did know what that the Ninja had it easy.


	14. ACT II: The Statue in the Corridor

**Welcome back everyone. My advice for writing an OC, do not make them a clone of the main character. Enjoy and review.**

**The Statue in the Corridor**

The five walked into a corridor. It was quite an ordinary corridor. It had doors, paintings, curtains a statue of a Pharaoh at the end on their left.

Obviously, that statue was what caught the attention of the 9th graders. Why? That statue was not ancient! That was why! Some parts of it seemed to be missing.

"I feel like I've seen this somewhere before." Said Arthur. He walked to the library door and opened it. "Yes! That's it there it is! Come! Look!" Everyone did just that. There was a stained glass window in the library but a chandelier was blocking the view of it.

William shook his head. "Lets look on the ground floor." They went down to the ground floor and were able to get a clearer look of the image on the stained glass. It depicted a pharaoh holding two scepters in his hands.

"Those are what's missing!" exclaimed Carla. "The statue doesn't have any scepters! They must be hidden somewhere! We've got to find them!"

Niall just stared at the scepters. What sort of a place was this? It was an absolute madhouse! A museum it might have been but with a living mummy and a missing owner… A living mummy and a missing owner… Suppose Anthony wasn't missing. Suppose he was the mummy, the old Scooby-Doo hoax.

The only question was why would Anthony do it? He owned everything in this place. He knew Carla would be one of the visitors. It just didn't make any sense… Yet that statue was not ancient.

What would Heidi do in this situation? She was the smartest person Niall knew and the one he thought of as a big sister. Considering how his older brother Robert was, Heidi would be the older sibling Niall would love instead of outright tolerate. Heidi would probably notice what was missing, quickly find it and then bring it back to the statue.

_Let me out!_

Niall jumped. He then looked around. "D-D-Did s-s-somebody s-s-say s-s-something?"

Nobody had said anything. Yet Niall had heard something.

_Let me out, Niall!_


	15. ACT II: The Corridor

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**The Corridor**

In the corridor there was some four doors not counting the door to the library. They would have to split up.

"The first door is the parlor." Said Carla, pointing at the door opposite of the library door. "Me and Niall will look in there. William, the second door on the right leads to a second study can you take that one?"

"Sure."

"The third door on the right at the end of the corridor leads to a bathroom. Can you check it out, Arthur?"

"What's the worse that can happen in a bathroom?" asked Arthur.

Slip, fall and break your nose on the bathtub came to mind for Niall. That had once happened to his big brother Robert.

"Wait a minute!" Bramwell looked at the fourth door. "What about that door? Shouldn't I look in that room?"

"It has always been locked whenever I was here, I don't know what it leads to." Carla looked at the towering giant before her. "Can you wait in the corridor and tell us if the mummy shows up?"

"So while you are looking for things I play mummy watch?" asked Bramwell. That was pretty much the thing he had to do. "Okay."

From where he was standing, Niall could see something silver on the floor in front of the study door. Walking over to it, he discovered it to be a fork partially concealed by the carpet. Walking back over to the group with the fork in hand, Niall looked at them with confused eyes.

How could this be of any use?

William didn't know how to explain it.

Neither did Arthur despite all of his weirdness.

Bramwell, despite being a closet genius, had no explanation either.

Not even Carla could give an answer. No one could explain how it could be of any use. All they could do was split up.


	16. ACT II: The Upstairs Study

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**The Upstairs Study**

William found Anthony's upstairs study to be an absolute mess! It was like someone had ransacked it! There was stuff all over! On his right, next to the door was a blackboard. Everything had been rubbed off! On the left side of the door was a small panel, locked of course! He needed something to open it! To the left of an armchair was a book.

In the book was a collection register. Everything on it was not in the house or any pictures. This register was a fake! Carla's half-brother was hiding something! The genuine register had to be in the study somewhere!

There was a fireplace in the study. It was still warm! Someone had been in here shortly before William had!

Walking to a window behind the desk, William saw someone make a very quick exit over the roof. He was right! Someone besides them and the mummy was wandering around the house!

Turning to the desk, something caught William's eye. It was a letter.

_Dear Sir_

_On behalf of all the country house personnel, I am writing to inform you that we resign. We ask that you pay us via your lawyer Mr. Clarke-Smith. Our resignation comes into force, as soon as you or Mr. Clarke-Smith receives two copies of this letter._

_Ralph,_

_Your former chamberlain_

If Ralph had resigned along with everyone else then who had let them in when hey arrived?

Looking at a small door in the middle of bookshelves, William already guessed where it lead to. The library! Given where the door was located it could lead nowhere else!

Returning his eyes to the desk, William noticed a secret compartment. Opening it, he found a panel featuring some sort of contraption. It had cogs and one was missing!

Looking to a painting over the fireplace, he felt a strange feeling like there was something behind it. There might as well have because in this superb painting was a crack at the bottom.

Taking the fork from his pocket, William inserted it in the crack and a clicking noise came to William's ears. The painting flew up and revealed a hole in the wall. There were two things in it: a genuine register and a cane.

William would have to return to the panel later. For now he'd go help Arthur in the bathroom.


	17. ACT II: The Bathroom

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**The Bathroom**

The first thing Arthur noticed when entering the bathroom was there was water in the tub. Walking over to it, Arthur put a finger in the water and found it to be still warm. Someone must have taken a bath not too long ago.

Why would a mummy take a bath?

Arthur pulled the plug. Once the bath was empty, he discovered a sand deposit left in the bath.

There must have been something else besides sand in a bathtub!

Walking over to the sink, Arthur grabbed the bar of soap. This would come in handy, he was sure!

It was at this point that William entered the bathroom. Immediately, his eyes came to the bar of soap in Arthur's hand.

"Really, Arthur? We're going to be doing battle with the supernatural and this is what you've got? A bar of soap?"

Arthur just looked around. "What's supernatural around here?"

William rolled his eyes. Arthur was a shoob. It was like Howard wanting to get Randy a three-headed chicken.

"So what did you find?"

"A full bath."

"Anything in the bath?"

"Yes." Said Arthur.

"What was in the bath?" asked William.

"Water." Replied Arthur. He was not the sharpest tool in the shed.

"Besides that." William could not believe he was actually asking Arthur something. This must have been some punishment for a terrible crime in a past life!

"Sand." Arthur's response caused William to blink. Now there was something very odd. This had to be investigated!


	18. ACT II: The Parlor

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**The Parlor**

In the parlor, Niall and Carla found themselves in a standing next to a sarcophagus on a display cabinet. It was missing the lid and it was empty! The title of Kharis XI was next to the cabinet. Inside the sarcophagus was some fine sand.

"Looks like Kharis XI went for a walk." Commented Carla.

"Hmm." Niall nodded. His eyes then turned to an old rifle above the display. It might still be dangerous. Niall wasn't a big gun fan, not of weaponry at all really.

They then walked to the right of the parlor. There was a collection of pipes on shelves.

"It is sad that Anthony smokes." Commented Carla. "Why doesn't he just drink poison?"

"He would if he had any wouldn't he?" asked Niall. Neither her nor Carla had any love for smoking. It was an unhealthy thing that had killed a maternal uncle of Niall's and who knew what it was doing to Anthony. "But wait! If he has all these then he must have something to clean them!" Niall looked at the cupboard beneath the shelves. There was a pipe cleaner. Naturally, he retrieved it. It was fairly strong and flexible.

While Niall grabbed the pipe cleaner, Carla noticed a picture of her half-brother. It had all his trophies in it yet they had not seen any of them.

"Strange." She then turned to the right and looked at a large family tree. Her elder half-brother Harold's name had "That murderer!" written next to it in red ink. She knew that Harold and Anthony didn't get along but could Harold really be the one behind all this?

As Carla thought if her eldest half-brother could be behind this mess, Niall walked over to a dresser. An ideal place to hide something! It was even locked but he would not dare open it. He then looked at a trophy lion's head in the middle of the back wall above a fireplace. It looked like there was something stuck up there but unfortunately, being the shortest kid in the 9th grade Niall could not reach it. He needed something to…

"Hi ho, lady and gentleman!" William came into the study holding a cane. "Need any help, me hearties?" Niall's eyes instantly fell on the cane. That was exactly it! He ran over and took it from William, then used the cane to rotate the lion's head revealing a hiding place in the wall. Inside was a package tied with a pink ribbon. Upon opening it, Niall found it had been containing four pieces of wood. Very strange! William was not one asking for an apology or thanks, he just started helping. Arthur's buffoonery had given him a headache. On the right of the fireplace was a sofa, in front of the sofa was a small table, in front of the table was crumpled piece of paper. Uncrumpling it, William found it to be a letter. It was a letter from Carla to her half-brother. "You never told us you studied archaeology, Carla!"

"I…" The rest of Carla's response was lost by mumbling.

"Alright then." William turned to his right and saw closed green curtains. Opening them, he found a door. Locked, of course, yet he could see a key in the lock from the other side of the door! Walking over, Niall held up the pipe cleaner and started to insert it into the lock until William stopped him. "Wait! The lock is rusty, we need something to-"

"HELLO!" Arthur came walking in.

"Oh, good lord!" exclaimed William in fright. There Arthur was holding soap in his right hand. The look of fright turned to one of unbridled joy! "Oh, thank you lord!" William walked over to Arthur and took the soap from him. He then returned to the locked door and cleaned the lock with the soap until there was nothing left of the soap. Niall then used the pipe cleaner to push the key out of the lock. Once it was on the other side they needed something to get the key. William pulled out of his pocket the fake register and used it to retrieve the key. Now with they key they could go into the mysterious locked room!


	19. ACT II: The Bedroom

**Welcome back everyone. SariSpy56 and Me did not plan this it is mere coincidence that we both updated our Egypt related fan fics on the same day. Enjoy and review.**

**The Bedroom**

Were they still in the state of New York? From the looks of the room, they felt like they had suddenly been swept away to Cairo, Egypt.

"Anthony's bedroom…" muttered Carla. Niall was shocked. This was Anthony's bedroom? The man must have been completely obsessed with all things Egyptian if he had his own bedroom look like something from a Cairo hotel! "Look!" She pointed over a dresser that had a pith helmet on it. "That's Anthony's! He never leaves home without it!" If that was true then Anthony must have still been in the house even if the mummy got him. She then walked over to the dresser and looked at an Egyptian papyrus above it. She touched different elements of the pictures until a clicking noise was heard.

"Convenient that she would know about something like that." Commented William.

"I-I-It is her b-b-brother's house, he must have shown her everything." Stated Niall. Since Carla was Anthony's sister she probably knew all of his tricks better than they did.

Carla then walked over to the bedside table. "There are pieces missing of the surface marquetry!"

Pieces missing? Niall quickly took the four pieces of wood from his pocket and walked over to the table. The pieces matched the spaces exactly! Within a minute, he put the four pieces in and the table's drawer ejected.

There was a letter inside the drawer! Carla quickly grabbed the letter and read it.

_My dear old friend_

_I am writing to you to confirm the translation made in Cairo concerning the scroll found in Kharis XI's sarcophagus._

_It is a curse concerning anyone who might violate the tomb._

Niall had been reading the letter over Carla's shoulder and the moment he read what he had read he turned around, rather frightened and screamed "Kharis XI is on the loose and he's dancing with Beelzebub!"

"And we've lost Niall!" said William. He wasn't too far off. Niall was completely convinced that the mummy was genuinely alive and not some guy in a costume.

Carla then took some instructions for the papyrus puzzle. Even Anthony had trouble remembering it, it seemed.

Finally, she took out a letter she had sent Anthony recently. It had been read but no response was given all that was written on it in Anthony's handwriting were "She must be protected from this horrible danger."

"Oh! Something terrible has happened to Anthony!"

"That is why we are looking around, Carla." Said William, holding the frightened Niall by the shirt collar.

Carla walked over to the papyrus and solved the puzzle. It slid upward and revealed an Egyptian Scepter. That hiding place was often used for things such as canes. She then looked up at a ceiling fan. There was a small object stuck on one of the blades. Using the scepter she knocked the object down, which fell onto Niall's head and calmed him down. Removing the object from his hand, they all discovered it to be a golden scarab.

"Oh, cool." Said Niall. He liked shiny objects, something he had inherited from a mad great aunt.

Recognizing it, William grabbed it from Niall. "Wait a minute! The study!" And with that William exited the bedroom.

Shrugging, Niall and Carla both walked over to the one unexplored part of the bedroom: the wardrobe! They opened it and found traces of stage make-up on a white shirt on a hanger. Was the Mummy real or was it a fake?


	20. ACT II: Still the Bedroom

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**Still the Bedroom**

The discovery of the stage make-up had caused the seed of suspicion to be planted in Carla's mind. What if Anthony was the mummy? If so they what happened to the mummy of Kharis XI? If Anthony were the mummy then why would he disguise himself as one? What would drive him to commit murder?

Unsure of what to do Carla stared at the stage make-up. Niall only found himself wishing that Heidi were here. That time he had broken down crying after killing that killer chimp, she had comforted him. Heidi seemed more like a mother to Niall than his own mother Ulrica, considered certifiable by some on her side of the family hence her seldom spoken nickname of "Certifiable Ulrica" and few had the courage to say it to her face be she a gentlewoman or not.

They both had their views of people. The fact that Niall viewed Heidi as a maternal substitute said something about his relationship with his own mother. Carla's view of Heidi was rather neutral. She didn't like or dislike her. A lack of interaction with Heidi might have had something to do with it.

Niall was friends with Theresa, Carla not so much but they had geometry together. Theresa had introduced the two properly. Prior to that they had simply been classmates in Mr. Bannister's fourth period class.

To compare the two would be rather pointless. One had trouble talking to people and the other was shy. One had mother problems, the other father problems. To compare their fathers would be easy. Cerdic Warburton was a good-natured man, formerly something of a doormat and yet as a young man had been a fencing champion and was currently the author of a bestselling swashbuckler series. Mr. Marzorati on the other hand, his first name believed to be either Alfred or Bodb, was… No one was exactly sure of what he had been before retiring. He had either been a carnival employee or a psychiatrist. Unlike Cerdic who until Robert's birth in 1996 had been someone who would venture forth from his home, Mr. Marzorati had been a mystery ever since the 1960's. Whatever his job had been be it carnival employee or psychiatrist, he had become rich and well respected. In recent years however, Mr. Marzorati had become the subject of some unkind rumors. For a man his age he was looking rather young, seventy-five and looked twenty-eight. Cerdic might have become a bit of a recluse but he was still held in high regards by everyone, that and he actually looked fifty-three.

"Niall?" Carla grabbed Niall's arm. "Lets go to the study."

"O-Okay."

And with that they departed for the study.


	21. ACT II: Again the Upstairs Study

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**Again the Upstairs Study**

With the golden scarab in hand, William placed it on the gear wheel in the secret compartment in the desk. It was a perfect fit! He then turned the wheel to start the mechanism.

The secret compartment did not reveal itself.

Looking around, William thought about what could have gone wrong. He leaned on the mechanism as he thought causing it to go down and slide into the desk. Naturally, this caused William's hand to fall into the compartment completely surprising him.

Inside it were two documents from the "Advent of the Avatars" association for the promotion of archaeological research. It seemed the association had paid for Anthony's previous expedition. The second letter was far more aggressive and threatened Anthony with the words "Anubis is on our side." Was this an association secretly a cult that worshipped the Egyptian and through them the Greek and Roman gods under their Egyptian names?

There was a third document in there. A strange blue one with cabalistic signs on it!

William then looked at a panel on the right of the study's door. It seemed a code was needed judging by the numbers on it. William looked at the third document and then smiled. He was holding the code in his very hands!

William entered a seven, then a four, then a two and finally a nine.

The panel opened revealing a key inside. For someplace in the parlor no doubt judging by the word that was engraved on it!

So many keys all of them so well guarded. What treasures was Anthony hiding from the world?

"You find something, William?" Carla and Niall were in the study. The former had spoken.

"A key." Was William's answer! "A key for the somewhere in the parlor."

Niall stared at the key. He kept staring. Finally, he nodded. It was a key that William was holding. When was a key not a key? When it was a sword.

The question on the mind of everyone was where would in the parlor was the key for?


	22. ACT II: Still the Upstairs Study

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**Still the Upstairs Study**

The three would have gone to the parlor if Niall's injury from the Psycho Ninja's attack had not started acting up. He fell back and clutched at the spot on his chest where the Psycho Ninja's sword had struck. This was the first time this had ever happened. If it were to ever happen again was a mystery but it was likely.

"Are you okay, Niall?" asked William. Niall gave William a look. What kind of a look? It was a look. If there were a tax on looking everyone would be beggars. "Right, stupid question." William tapped his foot. "Uh, can I get you something?"

"Y-Y-Yes, a b-b-book a-a-and a g-g-glass o-o-of w-w-water." Stuttered Niall, sarcastically.

William just stared. A stuttering person being sarcastic… He had thought it impossible. "I can get the former but not the latter."

Niall closed his eyes and rested his head on the floor. This was terrific. He was in pain and there was probably no one who could help him. He then opened his eyes. He wasn't in pain anymore.

That was odd. It came and went just like that!

"Something wrong?" asked Carla, fairly worried.

"I-I'm not sure." Replied Niall. How was he to explain that the pain just came and went? It was simple to do but probably would have raised questions. It was a bad time for the injury to be acting up too. What if the mummy were to show up when it was? He'd be vulnerable and most likely end up joining… Well, better not to think of that.

_Let me out!_

That voice again! But it didn't sound like it was coming from inside the room but from inside his head. His evil half! He had seen the evil halves of many a person come out when they turned into monsters. In the case of Hannibal McFist it had been an eviler half but Niall didn't know that, in fact very few people knew that.

Letting out his other half was the last thing Niall wanted to do! For all he knew his evil-half was a hulking giant as a monster! Of course, given his lack of indulgence in his evil half it was actually shorter than he was. It was the same reason why Theresa's evil-half was plant-like in appearance.

A good thing to make note of that being far from Norrisville, he was in no danger of turning. Randy knew that, Howard knew that, everyone else did not know that.


	23. ACT II: Again the Parlor

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**Again the Parlor**

Once more in the parlor, Niall, William, Arthur surprisingly and Carla entered the key that had been found in the upstairs study into the lock of the parlor dresser. It fitted perfectly. Inside they found a second scepter in the shape of a flail. It was beautiful but worthless, a mere imitation.

"T-This is it!" said Niall. "W-We've got both of the scepters."

"Yes…" said William. "But what will they do once put in the hands of the statue?" Everyone looked at William. That question had not crossed their minds. "What if there is a booby trap?"

"Nyeh, heh, heh." Giggled Arthur. William looked at a raised eyebrow. "You said 'booby!'" Arthur was for the word 'booby', what Howard was for the word 'duty.' Those two should do lunch sometime. William accidentally backhanded Arthur causing him to smack his head against the wall. "I sing for the hardness of the walls. Hooray for the hardness of the walls."

"As I was saying, what if it is a booby trap?"

"A booby trap, William?" asked Carla. "Isn't that idiotic?"

"Why?" asked William.

"If someone is going to protect something with puzzles and searching for things, why would they need booby traps?" Carla made a good point. Don't need to harm anyone if you are testing their mind.

William nodded in agreement. Carla's point was good. A new thought came to his mind. This one he kept private though.

It was at this point that Arthur began rambling. "Robert and Niall both have the same mother. One is a bully, so what is the other?" Arthur turned from the wall he had been slumped up against and stared at Niall. He occasionally did ramble, Viking related stuff or complete nonsense, of course, but never something like that, something so random.

"What?" asked Niall.

"You are bad luck! The Ninja could have been killed by chimps because of you." Arthur was not yelling. He was creepier when he didn't considering how loud he was sometimes. No one gave an answer. The general belief was that the blow to his head had caused some sort of madness that would pass in a few moments. That was something they could merely hope for.


	24. ACT II: The Statue

**Welcome back everyone. Here is the ending to Act II. Enjoy and review.**

**The Statue**

Returning to the statue in the corridor, the whole group was no once again together. They all stared at it with suspicious eyes. That statue was not ancient.

Niall put the scepters in the statue's hands. Upon having the scepters in its hands, the statue slid to the side. It revealed an entrance to a wine cellar.

"Well, that disproves my booby trap theory even more." Commented William.

Niall nodded in agreement. This was something that should have been expected. A secret entrance! What was not expected was for it to lead to a wine cellar. Yet there was something on Niall's mind, the same thing on everyone's mind. Where was the mummy?

Looking up at Bramwell, Niall asked his question. "Have you seen the mummy?"

"Can't say I have."

It had to still be in the building. The mummy couldn't have known where the scepters were so it couldn't have been down in the wine cellar. Unless…

"What if it is stalking us?" asked William. "Like a jungle cat?"

Yes, that must have been it! But there was one thing that didn't make sense.

"If it were wouldn't we have seen it at some point?" asked Carla. "That thing isn't hard to miss and this place doesn't offer that much camouflage, there is nothing to hide in up here. The only sarcophagus up here lacks a lid and it is the mummy's sarcophagus, which is empty."

Where would the mummy have been hiding? There was no place for it to hide. Just where was it? It had not been in any of the sarcophagi downstairs. Had it been outside?

"The mummy is on the loose and he's boogieing with Old Nick!" Arthur sure did have a way to put things. After saying that, he promptly ran into the wine cellar.

Shrugging, Bramwell followed Arthur in. Someone had to keep an eye on Arthur. It might as well have been him.

William put a hand on the shoulders of Niall and Carla. "Well, shall we?"

They did. Once everyone was inside the wine cellar the door that was the statue closed behind them. Once the door closed, the sinister shadow of the mummy fell over the statue.


	25. ACT III: The Wine Cellar

**Welcome back everyone. So begins Act III. Enjoy and review.**

**The Wine Cellar**

Once in the wine cellar, everyone noticed that there was a doorway blocked up with stones on their right. They couldn't get out that way, no way, no how!

Niall then walked between rows of wine barrels. He found a shape of a door on the wall. A door that was blocked and a door that was not there! This was incredible!

But wait! Niall knelt down and found sand that did not come from this room. There had to be an exit!

William walked over to the wine racks at the back of the room. Looking closely at a compartment of standing bottles he noticed two that did not belong. They were red. A bottle of liquor and gin! Behind those were six circles that were meant to hold something. Quickly, William found more that did not belong: a yellow bottle of Bordeaux, Touraine, a red bottle of Bourgogne and on a barrel rack he found an empty bottle. How strange. He then walked over to the door and found a bottle of Spanish wine and a stick on the ground. Very strange! He then returned to the circles and placed six bottles in them until all he had left was the gin and the empty bottle. The bottles slid downward and a door opened revealing… He wasn't sure what it was revealing. Looking at the stick he was holding, an idea came to William's head. He had a stick and alcohol all he needed now was rags and matches. He found rags in the wine rack, now he needed matches. Looking around, he found a second stick next to a stool near a table. Someone had recently eaten here. On the table were also a flask of water and a box of matches! And then a mattress on the floor came to his attention. Removing it, he found a small wooden trap door. He tried to open but couldn't! He needed something like a…

"Want to be Thor?" Arthur was behind him holding a hammer. That would do nicely. "I found it by some barrels."

"Thanks." William took it and smashed the trap door open. Inside he found a small Egyptian statue. Very strange! With that out of the way, William created a torch. "Ladies and gentlemen, I say 'let there be light!'" He then turned to a shadowy doorway near where Niall was. "Come on then, let's go!" They would have if not for the fact that Niall was looking at the sand that did not belong. There was something not right here. William knew it too. They all knew it! Anthony missing, a mummy roaming the house, sand being where it shouldn't be, things in places they shouldn't be and now a mattress and evidence of someone having dined down here in the wine cellar recently. "Niall?" Niall looked up at William. "You okay?"

"Uh, yeah." Niall nodded. "Just thinking about… Randy's bag!"

"You mean his purse?" asked Bramwell. "What about it?"

"My mom has one just like it."


	26. ACT III: Still the Wine Cellar

**Welcome back everyone. Enjoy and review.**

**Still the Wine Cellar**

Niall was of course lying. He was a poor liar, more of a good boy than the historical Jack Horner had ever been, and thus a lie from him was hard to expect. He felt wrong just saying that he had been talking about Randy's bag or purse or whatever it was to be called.

What was he thinking about? The evil side he had that due to his lack of indulgences in any evil acts was quite small, half the size of himself. It was like how Theresa's stanked form was more of a plant than animal a lack of indulgence in evil caused the other half to be either smaller or not human.

Besides being half his size, and that was saying something considering Niall was shorter than both Howard Weinerman and Debbie Kang, Niall's other half was a green skinned thing with black hair and eyes that had fangs like a dog. A muscular fellow, in stark contrast to how slim Niall was, and that only caused him to look completely ridiculous.

If the Ninja were ever to see Niall's stanked form, he'd probably burst out laughing.

"Are going in Niall or aren't we?" asked William.

"Uh, go on in w-without me!" replied Niall. "I-I'll follow when I'm ready to c-come in."

"Alright." William shrugged and then everyone walked into a darkened room.

Everyone except for Carla! She stayed with Niall, taking a seat next to him. Not a literal seat of course, she just sat down next to him. They spent a few minutes in silence. It was like an awkward blind date… Or an arranged marriage… Or both. Both. Both was good.

To say that Niall didn't know why she had not gone into the darkened room would be an understatement. It couldn't have been that she was afraid of the dark because William was holding a torch. A burning torch in fact! Therefore there was no need to fear the dark, no matter how many giants and bugaboos might have hidden in the shadows.

"Are you okay?" she asked, sounding quite concerned.

"I don't know. Being on the edge of life and death can change you. Maybe not for the best! It can reveal things you don't want to know about yourself." Niall looked at the darkened room where the light burned. It was like a beacon on a mountain top, something Niall wished he could find inside himself.


End file.
